New regulations in Virginia limiting their use may be the death knell for cul-de-sacs. Planners and developers debate their worth, but new studies show they aren't cost effective for cities, or even as safe as assumed.
Michael Cannell writes, "Planners say the circular, meandering cul-de-sac layout requires circuitous drives to even the closest locations John Michlig, who writes a suburban planning blog called Sprawled Out, says that it takes city crews six times as long to performance cleaning and other services in his Wisconsin suburb as it would in a grid neighborhood."
FULL STORY: Death to Dead Ends: Will the New Suburbia Omit Cul-de-Sacs?
A 'Cul-De-Tax' for the Cul-De-Sac?
A recent study studying the contemporary planning profession's rejection of the cul-de-sac includes a proposal to create more economic disincentives for inefficient street grid patterns.
Uniform By Design: The Similarities of Suburbs
A Vox video digs into the history of how suburbs came to resemble each other.
Revisiting Subdivision Regulations
For many decades now, most communities in the United States have grown as a series of subdivisions, built on a tried and true formula. It might be time to change the math.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Vehicle-related Deaths Drop 29% in Richmond, VA
The seventh year of the city's Vision Zero strategy also cut the number of people killed in alcohol-related crashes by half.
As Trump Phases Out FEMA, Is It Time to Flee the Floodplains?
With less federal funding available for disaster relief efforts, the need to relocate at-risk communities is more urgent than ever.
More Apartments Are Being Built in Less-Dense Areas
Rising housing costs in urban cores and a demand for rental housing is driving more multifamily development to exurbs and small metros.
Plastic Bag Bans Actually Worked
U.S. coastal areas with plastic bag bans or fees saw significant reductions in plastic bag pollution — but plastic waste as a whole is growing.
Improving Indoor Air Quality, One Block at a Time
A movement to switch to electric appliances at the neighborhood scale is taking off in California.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Borough of Carlisle
Smith Gee Studio
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Claremont
Municipality of Princeton (NJ)